Normativeness and individualism

Five experiments were conducted with a twofold aim: firstly, examine the normativeness of some important features of Western individualism, and secondly, determine what aspect of social value serves as the anchor for their potential normativeness. Five key constituents of individualism were studied....

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:European journal of social psychology 2005-01, Vol.35 (1), p.123-146
Main Authors: Dubois, Nicole, Beauvois, Jean-Léon
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological and medical sciences
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Individualism
Normative data
Norms
Psychology
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Questionnaires
Selfpresentation
Social attribution, perception and cognition
Social judgments
Social psychology
Values
Western countries
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Summary:Five experiments were conducted with a twofold aim: firstly, examine the normativeness of some important features of Western individualism, and secondly, determine what aspect of social value serves as the anchor for their potential normativeness. Five key constituents of individualism were studied. A questionnaire composed of five sub‐questionnaires was used, each one referring to an ‘individualistic’ constituent and to its opposing ‘collectivistic’ referent. Two main paradigms in the judgment‐norm approach were implemented, one implying self‐presentation strategies and the other implying social judgments. Together, the results revealed that only three constituents of individualism can be considered normative—self‐sufficiency, individual anchoring, and internality—and that one of the constituents—the primacy of individual goals—is not normative at all, and may be even counter‐normative. The results pointed out an individualistic pattern that is much less homogeneous than often assumed. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
ISSN:0046-2772
1099-0992
DOI:10.1002/ejsp.236